Get Rid of Those Nerves, Make Speaking Fun!
20:01:00
I hated talking in class growing up. I was and still am a huge chatterbox but participating in class or standing in front of the room giving a speech always made me beyond nervous and I don’t think I am alone in feeling this way.
Often the only time students are able to speak out loud in front of the class, it is to answer a question or participate in a class discussion based on an academic topic. I don’t know about you guys but these situations always made me nervous. Unless I totally 150% guaranteed knew the answer, I was not raising my hand to participate for fear of being wrong in front of everyone.
This fear of being wrong and being embarrassed in front of everyone then createsd a fear of participating. The fear of participating increased my shyness and nervousness because I became so used to staying quiet.
Then all of a sudden class speech time rolled around and I’m too busy panicking over talking in front of the class to even think about a speech topic. I am totally paralyzed by the thought of being analyzed by my peers and evaluated by my teacher to be able to speak with flow and grace, despite how many times I practiced in the mirror and in front of my parents.
Gamify Public Speaking
Public speaking games are a great way to boost student confidence when speaking in the classroom. If we eliminate the factors that make speaking in the classroom scary, then we can hopefully eliminate the fear of public speaking altogether.
Public speaking games allow for students to talk in class in a play based way without the fear of being wrong or being evaluated. Students all participate in silly speaking games meant solely to get people talking, and not meant to come up with right or wrong answers.
One fun game is called Pass the Tennis Ball and it is a quick game that gets students thinking on their toes and involves some concentration.
All of the students sit in a circle while one student stands in the center of the circle with their eyes closed. A tennis ball is passed around the circle one student at a time. Whenever they choose, the student in the center will yell out a letter. Whoever is holding the ball when the letter is called out has to say six words beginning with that letter while the ball continues around the circle. If the ball gets all the way around and back to them before they say all six words, they switch places with the middle person.
This game encourages split second thinking and will keep everyone engaged and entertained while allowing quiet students to participate more.
Another fun one is called My Favourite Thing.
The teacher will come prepared with various items that the students havent seen before. In smaller groups, one students must pull out an item and quickly explain why it is their favourite thing. After their brief explanation they pass the same item to the next person who has to give their own unique explanation for why it’s their favourite thing. If somebody freezes up and can’t think of anything they are able to pass it on and try again at the end.
This game is awesome because it encourages fast thinking, creativity, and flexible thinking. It is a team effort where everyone is encouraged to do well.
I would love to implement public speaking games in my classroom in order to ensure that students feel comfortable speaking out in class. Check out some other fun games you can play in your classroom here!
I don’t want any students to fall behind because they are feeling too shy to participate and hopefully with these games nobody will be afraid to talk in class!
I don’t want any students to fall behind because they are feeling too shy to participate and hopefully with these games nobody will be afraid to talk in class!
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